Marvel Knights: Iron Man - Extremis Review

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(More customer reviews)This Iron Man DVD is a "motion comic" from Marvel Knights. They have taken the Extremis comic and turned it into a quasi-animated movie in six episodes. Before you discount this style of animation, note that the artwork is far superior to any of the other Marvel/DC "animated movies" (which all seem to look like slightly better versions of Cartoon Network cartoons) because it utilizes Adi Granov's original artwork with CGI enhancements of most of the tech and action scenes. The animation is fluid, and after only a few minutes you won't even realize you're not watching a fully-animated Marvel movie.
The strength of this DVD is Warren Ellis' storyline, which is more compelling than any recent comic book movie, except for perhaps The Dark Knight and the first Iron Man movie. This motion comic is unpredictable, hard-core, and exciting.
My only complaint about this DVD was N. Ronald Levine, who voiced the character of hippie Sal Kennedy - what a horrible casting choice! The scenes with Levine take you right out of the movie as you roll your eyes at the bad acting. Luckily, he's not in the movie much except for one scene in the middle.
If you're like me, every time you buy one of these Marvel or DC animated movies, you look at the cover art and eagerly hope that the product itself utilizes that same level of artistic expertise, only to discover that it's another Cartoon Network-looking piece of crap. But with Iron Man: Extremis, you finally get to see a full story with top-notch painted animation - and it's worth it!
I'm glad I gave this product a chance...and you will be too.

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Iron Man (Ultimate 2 Disc Edition) (2008) Review

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(More customer reviews)The first disc features 11 deleted and extended scenes. There's more of the opening ambush with Tony Stark being more proactive. We also see more footage of Rhodes and it quickly becomes apparent that he was the character with the most scenes cut from the film. We also see Tony and Pepper Potts attend another party.
The second disc starts off with the impressive "I Am Iron Man," a 108 minute making of documentary that can be viewed in seven segments or altogether, taking us through various aspects of the production. For example, we are taken step-by-step through the construction of the Iron Man armor with Robert Downey Jr. cracking jokes while being fitted for it. It's amazing how much of the suit is practical and looks really good in person. This is due in large part to the genius of the late-great Stan Winston and his company. Also included is plenty of soundstage footage of scenes being filmed.
"The Invincible Iron Man" is a six-part documentary on the comic book, tracing the history of the character. Stan Lee says that he modeled Stark after Howard Hughes, for the most part. He also mentions that he was never fully satisfied with the look of the armor - hence its many changes over the years. This doc also covers various key characters and storylines in excellent detail with several people who worked on the title over the years talking about their contribution to the mythos. This is a very well done overview of the comic book.
"Wired: The Visual Effects of Iron Man" examines the CGI work that went into realizing Iron Man's powers, like flying, his repulsors, and so on. Director Jon Favreau says that he likes to use practical effects whenever possible, which is wonderfully refreshing to hear, and in this film he mixed the practical with CGI.
"Robert Downey Jr. Screen Test." Incredibly, the actor had to do a screen test because the studio deemed him a risky proposition and this footage shows that he had a handle on the character very early on.
"The Actor's Process" features fascinating footage of Jeff Bridges and Downey rehearsing a scene with Favreau. It's great to see these guys at work and offers insight into how they put together a scene from the film from an acting point-of-view.
"The Onion's Wildly Popular Iron Man Trailer to be Adapted into Full-Length Film" is a funny satire where a newscaster "breaks" a story of how the Iron Man trailer will be made into a film that pokes fun at the rabid nature of the hardcore fanbase of the character.
Finally, there are "Galleries," featuring concept art, technology stills, behind-the-scenes photographs, and poster art.

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Suit up for action with Robert Downey Jr. in the ultimate adventure movie you've been waiting for, Iron Man! When jet-setting genius-industrialist Tony Stark is captured in enemy territory, he builds a high-tech suit of armor to escape. Now, he's on a mission to save the world as a hero who's built, not born, to be unlike any other. Co-starring Gwyneth Paltrow, Terrence Howard and Jeff Bridges, it's a fantastic, high-flying journey that is "hugely entertaining" (Joe Morgenstern, The Wall Street Journal).

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The Super Hero Squad Show: Volume One (2009) Review

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(More customer reviews)Great show for my kids but also some in jokes for those of us who know the real Marvel characters and a couple of puns that will go right over kids' heads. My biggest and guess only complaint is that there is only 7 out of the 26 episodes from the first season. It appears to be the first seven episodes. The stories on the show are minimally based on any actual classic Marvel story (although the episode title screen is a re-imagined comic cover). Basic good guy vs. bad guy with main characters of Iron Man, Hulk, Surfer, Thor, Falcon, Wolverine, Reptil vs. Dr. Doom, Abomination and MODOK. A lot of esoteric guest characters and every character is given one obvious personality quirk. Again this is really for little kids but you'll laugh too.
The episodes are:
And Lo...A Pilot Shall Come!
This Silver, This Surfer!
Hulk Talk Smack!
To Err is Superhuman!
Enter: Dormammu!
A Brat Walks Among Us!
Oh Brother!
Also there's bonus features of an interview with Stan Lee, the video of the theme song and a trailer for the video game.


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